


Liquid Courage Is A Virtue

by feverpitchfiasco



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: First Kiss, Insecure Jim, M/M, Song fic, it's a cher song
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-29
Updated: 2014-04-29
Packaged: 2018-01-21 05:58:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1540172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/feverpitchfiasco/pseuds/feverpitchfiasco
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bones is tired of watching Jim see everyone but him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Liquid Courage Is A Virtue

**Author's Note:**

> I had so much help from the amazing thepathlesstrekked. Y'all should go check her out. Also, the song is "Just Like Jesse James" by Cher.

Jim had dragged Leonard out on the town. Again. He’d deposited him at the bar, opened a tab with the bartender, and left him with a wink and a “It’s on me, Bones”. Again. Leonard ran a fingertip through the condensation on his glass and stared into the whiskey like it held the answers to any question he could think to ask. IT was the same as every Friday night. Jim would come over to his dorm, dress Leonard up until he deemed him satisfactory, and then they went to one of three bars. Jim would pay for any and all drinks Leonard wanted, then he’d disappear after a shared first drink to make the rounds and flash that pearly smile at anyone who was looking.

Above the ambient din of people and music, Leonard could just make out Jim’s laugh. A glance over his shoulder showed Jim grinning at a perky little redhead, his hand resting on her arm while he leaned in to hear what she said. Her fingertips trailed over his arm in turn and Leonard turned back to the bar when Jim’s smile turned predatory. He heaved a sigh and knocked back the rest of his drink before signalling for another. The bartender set the glass before him with a sympathetic look and a glance at Jim.

“Gonna go down in flames, McCoy. Don’t do this to yourself.” There was a brief hand on his shoulder, but then the bartender moved on to other patrons. His heart plummeted at the implication. He closed his eyes and took a breath before they shot open again. With a quick gulp of his drink, he pushed between people and ended up at the juke box. It was the reason Jim loved this bar so much. The antique thing played all the music Leonard ever made fun of Jim for listening to. Flipping through the selections for a particular title, he nodded when he found it. He queued the song before heading back to his seat at the bar to finish his drink and wait.

As soon as the familiar guitar started up, he stood and found Jim in the crowd. He waited until Jim saw him before he locked their gaze and moved with a determined grace between writhing bodies. He stepped right up into Jim’s space and he nodded his head towards the speakers with a raised eyebrow.

“Cher? Really? You’re such an old man, Bones.” Jim had to lean right in next to Leonard’s ear to make himself heard, but Leonard chose to ignore him and settled his hands on Jim’s narrow hips instead.

_You're struttin' into town like you're slingin' a gun_

_Just a small town dude with a big city attitude_

_Honey are ya lookin' for some trouble tonight_

_Well all right_

"Been watching you every damn time we go out. Watching you go home with anyone but me. You can't do this to me, kid. Either you show me what that loaded gun is for, or you leave me out of this." Leonard had his lips a hair’s breadth from the shell of Jim’s ear, honey thick Georgia drawl out in full force.

“Bones.. C’mon, what are you saying?” Torn between pulling himself in and pushing away, Jim shuddered and compromised on pulling his head back to look at his friend. He blinked in surprise at the intensity and heat in the look Leonard leveled him with.

_If you can give it I can take it_

_'Cause if this heart is gonna break it's gonna take a lot to break it_

_I know tonight somebody's gonna win the fight_

_So if you're so tough_

_Come on and prove it_

_You heart is down for the count and you know you're gonna lose it_

_Tonight you're gonna go down in flames_

_Just like Jesse James_

“I’m sayin’… That I’m tired of this. I’m tired of this song and dance we have goin’ on between us. You're good kid, I've seen the effect you have on people, all those broken hearts you leave behind. But it's time you've met your match, whatever you give, I'm takin' it, just give us a chance.” Pressed chest to thigh against Jim the entire time, Leonard ground his hips in sinuous, slow circles. Sinful, deliberate movements proved to Jim that still waters run really really goddamn deep as he pushed back hesitantly against Leonard.

_You break the laws of love in the name of desire_

_Take ten steps back cause I'm ready baby_

_Aim and fire_

_Baby there's nowhere you gonna run tonight_

_Ooh that's right_

“Bones. Bones, I don’t know. I don’t do casual with friends. Fucking around with someone is just stress relief at the end of the week. I don’t bring friends into it, and you’re the best friend I’ve got. You know that. I’m not going to risk fucking this up just for a night of fun. I’ll help you pick someone up, I promise I’ll find you someone. I promise you’ll have a good time, just please. I can’t lose you, not over this.” Jim’s voice wavered in Leonard’s ear even as he kept pressing himself closer. Clutching Jim close, Leonard smiled to himself and slid his hands from Jim’s hips up to his waist.

“This isn’t about one night of fun, Jim. I’ve wanted you for a long time now, and not just in my bed. You’ve known me long enough to know that casual isn’t in my vocabulary. I’m playing for keeps here. You burn so damn bright, let me burn with you.” Leonard’s hands, gentle and insistent, kept a constant pressure on Jim. Kept him flush against Leonard’s body as they moved together, moved against each other.

“I can’t mess this up, Bones. There’s no coming back from this when things go wrong.” Jim’s token protests held no conviction but plenty of poignancy and melancholy. Leonard pulled his head back and smiled at him.

 

_Well you've had your way with love but it's the end of the day_

_Now a team of wild horses couldn't drag your heart away_

_So come on baby_

_Come on baby_

_Come on baby you know there ain't nothing left to say_

“Then we won’t mess it up, Jim. Your heart’s down for the count and so is mine. So we’ll lose it together. What d’you say?” No one had ever looked at Jim with as much love and friendship as Leonard was in that moment. Whatever this thing between them was, it’d been going on for months and he was tired of fighting a losing battle. With a gentle curve of his lips, he leaned in and kissed Bones. Just a gentle press of lips, but full with the promise of more. The promise of enough heat to make the heart of a sun look like ice.

_Tonight you're gonna go down in flames_

_Just like Jesse James_

_Tonight you're gonna go down in flames_

_Just like Jesse James_

_I'm gonna shoot you down Jesse James_

 


End file.
